Evaluation of the Accuracy of Virtual Planning in Orthognathic Surgery: A Morphometric Study

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to prospectively test the accuracy of computer-aided orthognathic surgery comparing the virtual surgical planning with the three-dimensional (3D) outcome. METHODS: Patients that underwent computer-assisted orthognathic surgery were retrospectively evaluated. The postoperative results were compared with the surgical plan, superimposing the postoperative computed tomography (CT) scan onto the virtual plan. Surface-based superimpositioning of the postoperative CT scan onto the 3D preoperative plan was carried out to visualize the discrepancy between preoperative virtual plan and postoperative 3D CT result. RESULTS: A total of 17 consecutive patients that underwent two-jaw computer-assisted orthognathic surgery were enrolled in the study.The average linear differences for selected points were <1 mm in 12 patients out of 17. In 5 patients out of 17, the average differences for selected points were <2 mm. CONCLUSIONS: An overall high degree of accuracy between the virtual plan and the postoperative result was found.